Flowers and leaves. Photo: Don Wood, south coast, NSW

Flowering plant. Photo: Don Wood, ACT

Flowers and leaves. Photo: Don Wood, ACT

Common Name

Small Poranthera; Small-leaved Poranthera

Family

Phyllanthaceae

Notes

Annual or occasionally perennial forb to 30cm tall or sprawling.  Leaves alternating along the stems to opposite each other, 0.6-1.1cm long, 1-4mm wide, flat, hairless, edges slightly curved down, tips blunt, usually with a short point.  Male and female flowers on the same plant. Flowers small (less than 3mm across), with 5 'petals', male and female flowers white or pink.  Flowers in short dense clusters at the tops of the stems.  Family Euphorbiaceae in SA.

The description above is taken from Halford, D.A. & Henderson, R.J.F. (2005) Studies in Euphorbiaceae, s. lat. 6. A revision of the genus Poranthera Rudge (Antidesmeae, Porantherinae) in Australia. Austrobaileya 7 (1): pages 16-19. Map 10, page 27.  This paper maps Poranthera microphylla well east and south of the area covered by this key.

It differs from Poranthera leiosperma in that the leaves are shorter (6-11mm long) and the plant is more delicate.

Note that both the descriptions below were written before Poranthera microphylla and Poranthera leiosperma were separated.

Description and photo in G.M. Cunningham, WE Mulham, PL Milthorpe and J H Leigh (1981 and later printings) Plants of Western New South Wales page 464

PlantNET description:  http://plantnet.rbgsyd.nsw.gov.au/cgi-bin/NSWfl.pl?page=nswfl&lvl=sp&name=Poranthera~microphylla